I think the back 7 for the Eagles has some cracks showing. They lost both starting safeties, and I don't think either player they added is as good as who they're replacing.

Their starting CBs are hitting that questionable age range, where DBs can just fall off a cliff physically.

I also don't think that DL is as good as it was a year ago. Carter and Davis are physical beasts with potential, but Davis didn't exactly set the world on fire as a rookie.

I think they'll miss Javon Hargrave's interior pass rushing ability a bit.

Still the top team in the NFC, but I don't think that D is quite as good as people are projecting RN.
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I would lean that way, but you could also make a case that Davis and Carter end up making that DL better if they hit what expectations are.
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Yeah I don't see many holes mainly because probably only Carter needs to come in and start day 1. Their interior pass-rush probably drops off, but they could also immediately be better against the run with Carter, which was a relative weakness with Hargrave.

Their safeties could be vulnerable but Blankenship looked pretty damn good in the time he got and Brown is a better athlete than Epps. In fact, I think whoever replaces Epps is an upgrade. If they miss anyone it'll be T J Edwards, that could be a problem.
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Sure. And we just added a pro bowl DE, a stud WR, our new LT and yet another versatile DB in the first four rounds....if you want to project like that.
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Projecting high end first rounders vs what the Chiefs drafted is a bit different.
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I think the Steichen loss is gonna hurt the Eagles. And I think he’s gonna do a good job in Indy. They have a lot of pieces set up there.

The threat of the run game with AR and Taylor is gonna help that rookie QB. They got the perfect coach and high ceiling QB to make it work
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One. A single high end first rounder.

If Nolan Smith is going to be good then so is Uzi.
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The Eagles' weakness is the Chiefs.
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This. Whether or not Philly has any weaknesses, they still haven't proven they can beat the Chiefs.
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I know it doesn't matter because we have Mahomes and Reid, but really I don't see the controversy in saying they have a loaded roster, top to bottom, and it doesn't really have an obvious weakness or an area where you can say they've taken a step back other than maybe LB.

I think we may end up improving more than they did, but it's fair to say we have a couple of questions marks at OT and WR they really don't.
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It's arguably not as loaded as it was last year...

Their RB position is worse just on the fact that those dudes can't stay on the field.

They lost one of their guards.

And they lost a bunch of defensive players, you don't lose your 2 starting safeties, Gardner-Johnson has been a top 10 safety for awhile...have both your CB's get to oh god they suck now age..

And mix that in with losing one of the leagues best interior rushers and 2 of your starting LB's and think you are just gonna keep rollin like nothing happened.
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I'd say age on the OL is a weakness.

I think Jalen having film on him is a thing. He'll need to continue to develop. I think he earned the benefit of the doubt on that one, but a lot of their success was because no one had seen it before.

Schedule I think is another weakness. Their schedule was a FUCKING JOKE last year. I haven't looked at this years', but it could be a problem for them.

Defensive backfields are so hard to project year over year, but theirs will probably be fine unless their DL eats shit.
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Well yeah bc their draft class did next to nothing last year while ours was arguable the best in the league
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Well, see, the way it works is, when the rest of the contenders move on from established, productive players, we assume all of their young guys are going to be good.

But when the Chiefs do that, we assume all of their young guys are going to suck.

See, that's how we do.
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I thought kings projections were good. Let’s face it, last year the difference between the Chiefs, Eagles and Bengals was razor thin and more a matter of luck than differences in roster quality. And if San Francisco had of had any kind of functioning quarterback, they probably fit into that group as well.

So king looked at who has improved through free agency and the draft.

The Eagles did not lose nearly as much in free agency as most expected. To say their cornerbacks are at an age where they are going to substantially deteriorate this year is wishful thinking. They probably won’t be as good at safety, but they should be close. At linebacker Nolan Smith could actually be an improvement. They have such depth on the defensive line, and that got bolstered in the draft, that they won’t miss Hargrave. Their offence returns pretty much intact, except for guard, where they have a good replacement. And at running back, they have the same excellent backup they had last year plus to replace Sanders 2 really good backs who will be running behind a better line than they have ever ever had. That line and the fact there are two of them should diminish the injury issue concern. I think Philadelphia really outmanoeuvred Kansas City in terms of picking up Penny and Swift, particularly and getting both of them! And Hearst should be better this year with another year of experience under his belt.

So I don’t think there’s a drop off from free agency, at least not a significant one. And assuming the players, they drafted live anywhere up to near their projections and potential, they clearly get better than the other three elite teams from the draft.

The one thing that could hurt them is their loss of coaches. But given the depth, quality, and maturity of the roster that shouldn’t matter too much.

The Chiefs probably came out of free agency in terms of improvement about the same as the Eagles. They didn’t get better but they didn’t get worse. And maybe that’s optimistic thinking re the offensive line. Whether we are better off at tackle remains to be seen. Remember last year‘s line did not allow a sack in the Super Bowl to one of the best pass rushing teams in NFL history. Hopefully this year‘s lineup will be as good. Free agency did not improve the wide receivers, although there is tremendous potential for Thuney and Moore to step up. And will pachinko repeat his great year. I really wish the Chiefs could’ve been the ones who got Swift from Detroit. But the Eagles out managed them. On defense, I think free agency was a wash with no improvement or deterioration overall.

In terms of the draft, the Eagles certainly should have improved far more than the Chiefs, although you don’t know that until players play, and you find out who got busts and who got Cinderella surprises like Pacheco last year.

For the Bengles, who have a win record over the Chiefs, broken only by that incredibly stupid roughing play by Ossian, I think they clearly improved during free agency on their offensive line despite the opinions in this forum about Orlando Brown. their defence maybe deteriorates a bit due to safety defections, but the replacements should be good enough. and their draft would seem to be about as good as the Chiefs, although I think Murphy maybe has more potential than Uzomah.

So, based on improvements in the off-season, I think King could actually have rated Cincinnati ahead of Kansas City. But if the Chiefs receivers improve the way, I hope [and I include Rice here.] I think I would still alsogive the edge to the Chiefs.

I think king was right to leave San Francisco at number four in this elite group. They definitely improved in free agency with Hargrave. and surely they will get one quarter back that is functional and healthy.[Just imagine Sam Darnold, winning the Super Bowl! But with the rest of their roster, I think he could.]

So I think kings, rankings and projections are good although I would’ve grouped the top four teams together separate from everybody else. Butbif the 3 Chiefs receivers meet hopes and expectations the Chiefs should win the Super Bowl again.
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